The present invention is directed to verification of communications network-derived location information, and, more specifically, to a system and method that tests network-derived location information regarding a mobile communications device (such as a wireless communications device, Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) communications device, etc.) relative to the actual location of the mobile communications device for location-based services. This invention is particularly relevant to testing network-derived emergency services (i.e., 9-1-1) location information regarding a mobile communications device.
When abbreviated emergency services dialing (“9-1-1” in the U.S. and Canada) was first introduced, the emergency services operator had to ask the caller for a call-back telephone number and the location that the caller was calling from, among other information regarding the nature of the emergency. If the caller was unable to communicate this basic information to the operator, (because, for example, the caller was injured or did not speak the language), then help could not be dispatched.
To alleviate this problem, enhanced 9-1-1 (E9-1-1) was developed. In E9-1-1, the telephone number of the calling telephone is delivered with the call to the local public safety answering point (PSAP). The PSAP queries a regional Automatic Location Information (ALI) database using the calling telephone number as a key. The ALI database returns a record containing the street address and, in some cases, other information associated with the calling telephone number. The operator at the PSAP that takes the call is then presented with the calling telephone number and the street address associated with the calling telephone number. Such information aids the operator to call the telephone back in case the call is cut off for any reason and aids the operator in guiding help to the location of the caller.
To provide E9-1-1 capabilities for landline telephone subscriber in the current art, the physical address of the subscriber and the call-back number of the telephone are manually provisioned in the appropriate ALI database. In most cases, the incumbent local exchange carrier (ILEC) or competitive local exchange carrier (CLEC) track all landline telephone number changes and either report them to a clearing house that maintains the ALI database or updates the appropriate ALI database themselves.
The above-described system works very well in landline-based telephony, because telephone number and address are relatively fixed, changes occur slowly over time and changes occur in a manner easily tracked by the ILEC's or CLEC's. Wireless communications devices, however, do not have a fixed location by definition. Various governmental mandates now require that, when a wireless communications device makes an emergency services (e.g., 9-1-1) call, the wireless communications service provider must deliver the calling number (for call-back purposes) and at least a general location. In the United States, the government mandate requires implementation in two phases. Phase I implementation requires that the wireless communications network identify the cell site, cell sector, or both, that are handling the call. For phase II, The street address and, preferably, the actual location (i.e., the latitude and longitude, also called herein “X/Y coordinates”) of the calling wireless communications device must be delivered.
VoIP telephony is another communications technology that is not compatible with the above-described landline emergency services paradigm. VoIP communications devices may be plugged into a data network at a first location one day and then plugged in at a second location the next. Furthermore, some VoIP communications devices are wireless, that is; these VoIP communications devices connect to a data network at an access point via radio signals. The United States Government mandates that the location (again, at minimum street address and optionally latitude and longitude) of VoIP communications devices also be delivered. Wireless and VoIP communications devices are referred to herein as “mobile communications devices.”
Additionally, the United States government requires that wireless communications service providers periodically test the location system to verify that the location of a calling mobile communications device is being accurately determined and is in compliance with 9-1-1 emergency call mandates. Such verification currently involves one or more field technicians making a plurality of calls to a special number and recording the location from which the call was made using an independent location reference device (such as a global positioning system device). The location of the calling mobile communications device is determined and recorded by the communications network. The technician and/or other service personnel then manually compare the two lists and determine whether accurate location information is being determined. However, the location of the mobile communications device derived by the communications network is not readily available to the technician until sometime later, when the technician has access to the locations recorded by the communications network.
A problem in the art is that the current manual method of testing location information is time intensive and therefore costly. Additionally, if any errors occur when the wireless communications system determines the location of the wireless communications device, these errors cannot be detected until later and result in repeated testing.